LIMB TO LIMB – HOW DOES THIS COUSINS THING WORK?

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Perhaps you have heard someone referred to as a second cousin, once removed, and wondered what in the world that meant.  I’m going to try to explain that before I dive into our different branches; that way, if I refer to someone in terms of cousin relationship you can hopefully remember this brief description, or refer back to it here on my blog.

         Basically, the cousin relationship refers back to the common grandparents.  So, let me use my family tree:

 

  Siblings:

we share the same grandparents (Jim & Helen LAREW and Will & Iva CHURCHWELL)

Dean LA REW      

Kim GAUTIER LARSON    

Willa Jean HOFFMANN

 

        1st cousins:

Deana SERRANO (Dean)

Darin LA REW (Dean)

Derald GAUTIER, JR. (Kim)

Micah Aaron GAUTIER (Kim)

Zach GAUTIER (Kim)

Theresa ANDRESEN (Jean)

Kellie BESSETTE (Jean)

 

        2nd cousins:

Stormy STREET LA REW (Darin)

Ty GAUTIER (Derald) 

Kimberly GAUTIER (Derald)

MacKenzie GAUTIER (Derald)

Elisa ZIEK (Micah)

Atlanna WEST (Micah)

Alison GAUTIER (Micah)

Micah Pierce GAUTER (Zach)

Caleb GAUTIER (Zach)

Jake GAUTIER (Zach)

Hope ANDRESEN (Jean)

Matthias ANDRESEN (Jean)

Annaliece BESSETTE (Jean)

Jacqueline BESSETTE (Jean)

 

        3rd cousins:

Paisley ZEIK (Elisa)

Paityn ZEIK (Elisa)

 

As you can see, all 1st cousins are part of the same generation from the grandparents of Dean, Kim and Jean, and all 2nd cousins are the next generation from those same grandparents, and so on with 3rd, etc.  The trickier part is 1st cousins once or twice removed.  But it’s really not that complicated, it’s the relationship of a person of one generation to a person of another generation. 

Using the family above, Darin and Micah Aaron are 1st cousins; Darin’s daughter Stormy and Micah Aaron are 1st cousins, once removed.  The relationship works both ways – both Stormy and Micah would refer to the other as their 1st cousin, once removed.  The same goes for the relationship of Darin and Micah’s daughter, Elisa.

When you look at Elisa’s daughters (Micah’s granddaughters), Paisley & Paityn, they are Darin’s 1st cousins, twice removed (2 generations apart); they are Stormy’s 2nd cousins, once removed (1 generation apart).  So, as you look at people who are different generations from the common grandparents, the difference between those generations, 1, 2, 3, etc., make the “removed” part of the relationship. 

         This is especially helpful when you have large families where siblings are many years apart.  My grandfather William Thornton CHURCHWELL was 20 years younger than his sister, Frances Josephine “Josie” CHURCHWELL VAWTER.  So, his children were closer in age to her grandchildren.  You can’t always go by age; it all goes back to those common siblings and their grandparents. 

         Because it goes back to the same grandparents, I could just as easily compare my descendant’s relationship with my Larew cousin, Grandparents Jim & Helen LAREW:

 

Siblings:

Kermit LAREW

Georgia HASS                                                        

 

1st cousin:

Jean HOFFMANN

Keith HASS                                                    

 

2nd cousin:

Theresa ANDRESEN

Britany RAMOS                                                      

 

3rd cousin:

Hope ANDRESEN

Ava RAMOS

 

Or my Churchwell cousin, Grandparents Will & Iva CHURCWELL:

Siblings:

Harold CHURCHWELL

Mildred NUTTLEMAN

 

1st cousin:

Sandi O’BRIEN                                      

Jean HOFFMANN

 

2nd cousin:

Amana MARSH

Theresa ANDRESEN     


3rd cousin:

Andrew MARSH

Hope ANDRESEN

        

 

Or any distant cousin, Grandparents Francis & Sarah CHURCHWELL:

Siblings:

Francis Josephine VAWTER (born- 1870)

Will CHURCHWELL (b- 1890)

        

1st cousin:

Francis Marion (b- 1893)

Mildred NUTTLEMAN (b- 1923)

 

2nd cousin:

Evelyn STOLTZ (b-1926)

Jean HOFFMANN (b- 1957)

 

If this is still confusing, try putting in your own family names to help get a clearer picture.  If you’d like me to spell out relationships in your line, or your relationship to me, leave me a comment or send me an email, and I’ll do my best. 

 

NEXT:  MY LIMB ON THE FAMILY TREE – PART 1


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